University Guidelines
for Creating Web Content
Document Control
Change Record
Date / Author / Version / Change ReferenceJulie Adams, Ian Jones (Marketing),, Janet Weaver / Issue 1 / No previous document
04-JAN-2005 / Urszula Rayner / Issue 2
Table of Contents
Guidelines for printed material
Letting your customers know
Structuring your material
Using plain English
Text Format
Type size
Typeface
Type style
Space between lines
Type weight
Numbers
Line length
Word spacing and alignment
Design and layout
Contrast
Reversing out type
Navigational aids
Setting text
Designing forms
Columns
Images
Illustrations
Photographs
Paper
Folding paper
Alternative formats
Readability statistics
Guidelines for printed material
Letting your customers know
Every print publication should have a clear, large print statement in a prominent place about the availability of alternative formats.
Structuring your material
The title should clearly state the subject of the document and headings and sub-headings should allow the reader to follow the material in a logical order.
Ensure separate information is contained in its own paragraph to make navigation easier.
Using plain English
The more concisely you write, the more you help your readers.
Use short sentences and short words in preference to long words and phrases (“home” instead of “accommodation”, “help” instead of “assistance”).
Eliminate unnecessary words, for example use “now” instead of “at this present moment in time”, and ask yourself whether phrases such as “it has to be said that” add anything to your document.
Avoid jargon, abbreviations and technical terms unless you are sure that all of your readers fully understand them. If you have to use an abbreviation, write it out in full the first time you use it and provide a glossary.
Punctuation should be simple but accurate. A well-punctuated document is easy to understand.
Give instructions clearly. Avoid long sentences of explanation.
Be direct. For example, address the reader as “you” and refer to yourself as “I” or “we”. Imagine the reader is sitting opposite you and you are talking to them directly.
Write in an active rather than a passive voice. For example, write, “We will hold meetings…” rather than “Meetings will be held…”.
Aim to make 80 to 90% of your verbs active.
Avoid negatives, as they tend to confuse people. For example, “You will limit your choice of course dates if you do not respond by…” is better expressed positively as “You will have more choice of course dates if you respond by…”.
On leaflets or posters about events, keep essential information about time and place grouped together.
Text Format
Type size
The size of the type (known as the point size) significantly affects its legibility and is one of the most important features to bear in mind. A minimum of 12 point type should be used for all publications. However, the RNIB recommends the use of 14 point to reach more people with sight problems.
Typeface
The choice of typeface is less important than its size and contrast. As a general rule, stick to typefaces that people are familiar with and will recognise easily. Avoid italic, simulated handwriting and ornate typefaces, as these can be difficult to read.
Look for a font that spaces letters rather than running them closely together. A rounded font such as Arial, Comic Sans, Verdana, Helvetica, Tahoma or Trebuchet that reflects ordinary cursive writing is easier for dyslexic people to follow.
Both serif and sans serif typefaces are legible, but for large areas of text consider using serif typefaces as the shapes of the characters are easier for the eye to recognise.
When choosing a typeface, it is often useful to take your cue from existing materials. Most books are set in semi-bold serif typefaces, whereas bold, sans serif fonts are often used for signs, for example outside buildings. As a general rule, stick to what people are familiar with and will recognise easily.
Type style
Text that has been set in italics or capitals is usually more difficult to read since it is harder to recognise word shapes when the letters are all the same height or set at an angle.
A word or two in capitals is fine but avoid the use of capitals for continuous text. Italics are best avoided completely since many partially sighted people find them very difficult to read. Underlining should also be avoided as it makes it more difficult to recognise the shapes of the letters.
Space between lines
Another important consideration is the space between one line of type and the next. If this is too narrow, it makes print difficult to read. Since the lines are less clearly separated, the eye struggles to find the beginning of the next line.
As a general rule, the space between lines should be 1.5 to 2 times the space between words on a line.
Type weight
People with sight problems often prefer bold or semi-bold weights to normal ones. Avoid light type weights.
Numbers
If you print documents with numbers in them, choose a typeface in which the numbers are clear. Partially sighted people can easily misread 3, 5, 8 and, in certain typefaces, 0 and 6 too.
To avoid confusion, wherever possible, write out the word “eight” or “five” instead of the numeral.
Line length
Ideally, line length should be between 60-70 letters per line. Lines that are too long or too short tire the eyes.
The same applies to sentence and paragraph lengths, which should also be neither too long nor too short. The Plain English Campaign recommends an average sentence length of 15 to 20 words.
Splitting words by using hyphens disrupts reading flow, so should be kept to a minimum.
Word spacing and alignment
It is best to keep the same amount of space between each word. Do not condense or stretch lines of type, or, worse, single words. Keep margins generous.
The RNIB recommends aligning text to the left margin, as it is easy to find the start and finish of each line and keeps the spaces even between words.
Justified text, which is aligned to both margins, can be readable if the space between words is consistent. However, this is difficult to achieve with standard word processing or desktop publishing software, so is best avoided as people can mistake large gaps between words for the end of the line.
Aligning text to the right margin, which produces a ragged left margin, is problematic for people with sight problems. Each new line starts in a different place and is therefore difficult to find.
Centred text is even more difficult to follow and should not be used for blocks of text. It is, however, acceptable to use centred text for titles or main headings.
Design and layout
For someone with sight problems, user-friendly design is simple and uncluttered. Headings, photos, illustration, text, captions and so on should be clearly separated rather than competing with each other.
Contrast
The contrast between the text and the background is extremely important. Many people who are partially sighted also have difficulty with colour perception. Two colours, such as red and green, which would contrast sharply to an individual with unaffected colour vision, appear far less distinguishable to someone with partial sight.
Contrast is affected by several factors, including paper colour, inks, lighting, and the size and weight of the type. The relationship between the colours is more important than the colours themselves. As a general rule, contrast dark against light. Do not rely on colour-coding as the main means of navigating through a document.
Reversing out type
If using white type, make sure that the background colour is dark enough to provide sufficient contrast.
You also need to pay special attention to type weight and size when reversing type since white text on a coloured background appears smaller.
When using reversed type, try to avoid switching between white on black and black on white, as this can be confusing to the eye.
Also avoid reversing out on colours, as the contrast between the colour and the text may not be strong enough to make the text easy to read.
Navigational aids
A reader with sight problems finds that reading takes longer, so it is important to use features that make the layout easy to follow, and information easy to find.
It is helpful if recurring features, such as headings and page numbers are always clear and in the same place. These serve as navigational aids and help the reader find the information they need quickly.
If the document is longer than a few pages, put a contents list at the top. Longer documents should have an index.
Ruled lines to separate different sections are useful. Using boxes for emphasis or to highlight important text can also be effective.
Leave a line space between paragraphs. Dividing the text up gives the eye a break and makes reading easier. Avoid dense blocks of text by keeping paragraphs short.
Use bold to highlight important aspects of text. Italics or underlining can make the words run together.
Use bullet points rather than numbered lists or continuous prose.
Flow charts are ideal for explaining procedures.
A vertical rule, about 5mm to the left of the text, can help the reader find the beginning of each new line. This is particularly useful for people using text magnifiers.
Pictograms and graphics help readers to locate information. If you are producing a multi-page document, you could consider using images to help the reader find their way around, for example at the beginning or end of sections.
Remember that consistency is key when designing publications that will be accessible to people with sight problems.
Setting text
Avoid fitting text around images if this means that lines of text start in a different place. However, photographs positioned to the right of text do not disrupt the beginning of lines and are acceptable.
Always set text horizontally, as text set vertically or at an angle is extremely difficult for a partially sighted reader to follow.
Avoid setting text over images. Unless an image is completely even in tone, for example a photograph of a clear blue sky, setting text on top of it will confuse the eye. Readers are not expecting to find text within pictures, so it can easily be missed. If a blind or partially sighted person is avoiding images anyway, they will miss the text.
Designing forms
Partially sighted people tend to have handwriting that is larger than average, so allow extra space on forms. Tick boxes also need to be enlarged. This will also benefit people with conditions that affect the use of their hands, such as arthritis.
Columns
If you are setting text in columns, make sure the gap between the columns clearly separates them. If columns are too close together, there is a danger that the eye will jump to the text in the next column. If space is limited, use a vertical rule to separate columns.
If columns are too far apart, it can be difficult for the reader to find the beginning of the next column.
Be careful about putting pictures in the middle of columns. This can be confusing, as the eye has to skip over the picture to find its place.
Images
It is best not to assume that a reader with sight problems can see images. Since core information is conveyed through the text, it is more important that the text is clearly presented than the document includes attractive illustrations.
Do not rely on images to be the only source of relief from the text. The use of white space, headings and rules can do this more effectively.
Since some people have difficulty following images, they should not be the only means of conveying information. For example, if you are including a graph in your document, explain its meaning in words too.
Take care that images are clearly separated from the text and that they are not reproduced too small. Using an outline box to indicate the presence of an image can also help readers locate it.
Illustrations
Ideally, these should be line drawings, with thick, dark strokes or outlines. Pictures with undefined edges such as watercolours are less easy to read, as are highly stylised and abstract images.
Remember that even if a blind or partially sighted person can see an image, they may only see a small part of it at a time, which they have to build up into a bigger picture.
Photographs
If photographs are being used, they should not be too grainy or contain a lot of detailed information that could be lost to a blind or partially sighted reader.
The important part of the image should be obvious. Do not lay one photograph over another, as this will confuse the reader.
A picture where a dark foreground image is set against a light coloured background will be easier to read than a picture where the tonal values of its colours are equivalent to each other.
Paper
Avoid glossy paper because reflected light makes it difficult to read.
Choose uncoated matt paper that weighs at least 80gsm (the usual weight of a sheet of copier paper) and preferably over 90gsm.
As a general rule, if the text is showing through from the reverse side, then the paper is too thin.
Dyslexic people find off-white or cream paper less tiring than white.
Folding paper
When folding paper, avoid creases that obscure the text. If you are producing books, make sure that the central margin is wide enough to avoid text printing too close to the centre of the spine as it will appear distorted.
People who use scanners or screen magnifiers need to place the document flat under the magnifier, so take care about the number of pages in your document and the binding methods you use. Perfect binding (as used for paperbacks) can make it difficult to flatten the document.
Some people with sight problems need to hold the text close to their eyes and so find very large documents unwieldy. Alternately, very small documents that require a constant turning of pages can be frustrating.
Alternative formats
Some students are likely to have difficulty in accessing some media, such as noticeboards. E-mail might be an appropriate alternative to noticeboards for many students.
Readability statistics
Microsoft Word can be customised to display readability statistics each time you perform a spelling and grammar check. Go to Tools -> Options -> Spelling & Grammar and tick the check box.
Readability scores are based on the average numbers of syllables per word and words per sentence.
The Flesch Reading Ease score is based on a 100 point scale.
The higher the score, the easier the document is to understand.
For most standard documents, aim for a score of around 60-70.
The Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level score is based on the US system of school grades. For most standard documents, aim for a score of around 7.0 or 8.0 (meaning a 7th or 8th grader can understand it).
Tips on using and punctuating Plain English together with an A-Z of alternative words can be found at:
- [Reproduced with permissionfrom the "See it right" pack published by Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB). Copyright RNIB 2001. To purchase the "See it right" pack in full visit the RNIB website or email cservices@rnib/org.uk ]
- [Adapted with permission from ‘Dyslexia Friendly Style Guide’, British Dyslexia Association ( )]
Created By: IS Page 1 of 11 Last Updated: 10/03/2005 11:43